WASHINGTON — Democratic Illinois lawmakers are promising to fight cuts House Republicans have inserted for key rail projects in the state, the Chicago Tribune has reported. If the Republican House budget passes, Illinois will lose funding for the Englewood Flyover on Chicago’s south side and a planned Chicago-Iowa City, Iowa, passenger service.
“It’s an unprecedented move by the House Republicans,” said Christina Angarola, a spokeswoman for U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. “The Congressional Research Service tells us this is the first time one body of Congress has voted to take away from a project funding the federal government has already committed to give.”
The Englewood flyover is an important component of the Chicago Region Environment and Transportation Efficiency program. The flyover would eliminate the diamond crossing of Norfolk Southern’s “Water Level Route” headed east from Chicago and Metra’s Rock Island District commuter line. The Federal Railroad Administration awarded Illinois $133 million to build the flyover, which would ease congestion for 80 Metra trains and 60 freight and Amtrak trains daily.
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So, why would you undo something like this, of all things!? I don’t understand why Republicans hate rail so much, but especially when something like this would clearly give massive im
Illinois just farmed out its 3.7 biullion dollar negative pension position to bondholders at 2 points higher than any other bond offering. The state has no money, the feds have no money and most importantly WE who are their source of money have no money. It must be election season again.
Now why in the world would any one want to cut rail funding?
Well part of might be because we just had a big increase in our income tax, nursing home taxes, along with some others went up. Car, drivers license and many other fees have gone up.
Meanwhile, school funding has been cut [a couple schools have laid off 50% of their teachers], highway [at least down south], police and fire protection cut, along many other state services being cut or eliminated [with social and elderly hit the hardest]… DNR cuts, and talk of closing more state parks and historical sites. No one knows for sure how broke the pension fund is.
Meanwhile we’re still paying for high-speed rail to Chicago and maybe we’ll be funding for 3’rd airport for Chicago.
I won’t go any farther, because my temper starting to rise
I will Inch since I also live in the Craphole that is IL. There is more to IL than the Cook county that sucks more out of this state than you would imagine. For every dollar Cook County sends south they take back 12. When they demand more funding the rest of the State Bends over and takes it were the Sun does not shine it seems. We in southern IL get Screwed over so many times by Chicago and the Collar Counties it is not even Funny. Let Cook County or the Freight RR’s pay for this if they really want this. IL is Beyond Broke we have 55 BILLION in Pensions that are Unfunded yet our Stae Leaders refuse to do a freaking thing about it why they will not Make their Cashcow akak THE UNIONS mad.
Ed: Watch, your flaming. The numbers you cite are incorrect. 65% of the residents live in the Chicago metro area, where the median per household income is $61K, while for the whole state, including Chicago metro, it is $55K (Cook alone = $55K), and far less in most downstate counties, such as Marion County = $42k. The Chicago metro area provides most of the state revenue and funds Metra itself. Don’t bite the hand that feeds you.
We as the rest of Downstate are sick of being ruled by Chicago and the rest of the Crooks that live there. Lets see here La Salle County Housing can not find housing for people that live in La Salle county since the CHA using them for a Dumping ground for all the ones that they can not place. Pontiac and Dwight Prisons are so over Populated with Residents from Cook county it is not even Funny. Then we have were Chicago sends its trash that would be the Livingston COunty Landfill or as the Pontiac Residents call it Trash Everest. 10 Years ago when it opened it was supposed to last 50 Years now they are hoping to get another 10 years out of it. Why Chicago Trash coming into it. Chicago forgets that there is more to this state than it. I had my Doctor a Top Nuroeolgist go I never realizxed IL was so pretty all I ever see is Concrete. He came down to my local Hospital to do a Doctors visit to see me. He is thinking of leaving his Practice in Chicago and coming down here.
How do you think those of us in collar counties around Chicago feel about higher gas taxes than the rest of the state to fund the transit systems into Chicago we never use. Or five figure property tax bills while residents of Chicago literally pay hundreds and they can’t figure out how to raise more revenue. Or the lousy politicians that Chicago votes in for the state and national levels overriding the rest of us.
How do you think those of US DOWNSTATE feel when we are treated like we are worthless because we are not from Chicago. Look at the Returns for the Last Election Quin only won the Election because he Carried Cook County. He lost 99 out of 102 Counties in the State. When you hear the State is Broke yet the Politicans refuse to cut Payments to anything that has anything to do with Unions based out of Chicago because it will cost them votes but the rest of the State ius left to wither on the vine. Downstate we are Sick of it. We have cut to the bone on Mental Health services done here because Quinn has cut the Budgets for the Mentally ILL so Chicago can keep giving Free rides to Seniors. Then you Throw in allt he Sprawl of companies trying to get out of the Chicago area heck they are as far away now as Morris from Chicago and yet they still want to move further away just to get away from Chicago. As to what doing that project will save what were the estimates a few minutes a train to 30 Mins a train. Fine if the Freight RR’s want it they Pay for it out of their Capital Budgets not a Taxpayer dime is to be Spent on any CREATE Project We can not AFFORD the freaking things.
If the IL Pols want to do something Reign in the Out of Control Pensions Cut Spending by 20% in this state. Get the Pensions under control No one needs to retire with a 100K a year for the Rest of their freaking life Tax Freaking Free. Also Force the Unions Teacher State Workers to accept COLAs that are no more than what a SS Pensioner gets no more automatic 3-5% raise every Stinking Year. Also Cut off the Freaking Healthcare for LIFE. We can not afford IT.
Many of us in the suburbs are OK with supporting Metra.
I think you will find that effective property rates vary from community to community even in the suburbs, depending on whether or not there are commercial/industrial properties, as well as the equalized assessment values: 2006, Wheaton 1.70% vs Oakbrook 0.74% vs Chicago 1.29% vs Barrington 1.25%.
Ed, you must think that just flaming in capital letters makes facts out of your fantasyland posts. Do you ever read the newspapers? Quinn eliminated the Blagojevich seniors ride free plan. Very few folks get $100K pensions. Illinois teachers go on Medicare at 65, same as the rest of us. Try living in the real world.
henry6: The cost of doing nothing is kicking all the problems down the road. In a few years, when everybody is moaning about the high cost of oil, once again we will have to start on an emergency program at a much higher cost, when we could have been making the changes needed gradually. And then you and others who aren’t so short-sighted can say, “I told you so.”
In fact, it played to the script that she has in mind for the coming West Bengal elections: paint herself as the saviour of Bengal, someone who has unabashedly used her perch in Rail Bhawan to shower projects on the home state.
NEW DELHI: For the third successive year, the Railway Budget for 2011-12 spared the passengers of any increase in fares and proposed no hike in freight rates while introducing 56 new trains, including nine non-stop Duronto trains and three Shatabdis.
Despite what they tell voters, the Republicans are basically a big government party. For long term US national interest it is best to move away from foreign petroleum dependence. This is necessary for long term economic health of the country and national security. Truth is that imported oil comes from nasty, unstable places, Middle East, Russia, etc. It causes a two fold problem - expensive military deployments to protect oil sources and oil routes and that oil revenues fund thuggish governments who present threats to the US. Developing better rail transportation (freight and passenger) as it very fuel efficient and can be run on other energy sources is a good way to move away from petroleum dependence thus reducing these threats… What makes it difficult for elected officials to move in this direction is that there is so much personal benefit for doling out money for federal highway construction and to other non - rail transportation (air and inland waterways). Basically it’s patronage - if you dole government contracts or subsidize our mode of transportation we will contribute to your campaign war chest. These lobbyist groups have been strongly vested since the mid - twentieth century and have developed a well - oiled machine. The railroads fought a kind of opposite battle - prevent the federal government from interferring in their business and subsidzing the competition. In the lobbying the railroads could not offer a similar money recycling machine to politicans. Furthermore, the big government politicians are basically distrustful of privately owned transportation infrastructure - which are really just the freight railroads in relatively rec